Some Tears Will Never Dry
by OliveBottled
Summary: Be pretty farmiliar with the series. Kyo and Tohru await Kyo's confinement. Zodiac members being freed. Akito starting to become sane. Kind of... Bad summ, sorry. R
1. Prologue

**Prologue:**

_Disclaimer: I no own, you no sue. We all kapish._

_A/N: How could anyone expect me NOT to continue and write another Furuba fic after I discovered all this new stuff? So here it is. Number 4. 3 was Three's Company, 2 was To Lose Hope, 1 was Kyo's Birthday. This will by far be the most accurate so far. I will FORCE myself to keep everyone in character. No one will be added. Hm… I wonder if I'll ever get a chance to actually type these up… oh well. So, by the way, if you haven't seen too much of the series, there are a zillion spoilers in here…_

Kisa awoke to the sound of a door swinging then slamming shut. It was midnight. Feeling a multitude of goose bumps rise on her arms, she pulled her covers up around her so that only her eyes were visible… She stared, frozen, at her shut door. There were footsteps and the squeaky sound wet feet make on a wooden floor when they are running… and they were getting louder. At last, after what seemed to the girl an eternity, her door flung open and before she could scream, a soaking dark figure was pulling her to him in a tight hug.

"D-don't leave me!" whispered the figure urgently. Kisa easily recognized the voice. "Please… y-you can't! _Tell _me you won't leave me, Kisa!"

"A-Akito?" exclaimed Kisa's mother from the door, who had run to her daughter's room in panic at the noises. "What are you… why are you-"

"She can't leave me!" Akito cried, and the two others suddenly realized that his face was stained with tears. "You love me, Kisa, don't you? Right? You won't abandon me – you'll come and be with me, like Kureno, won't you?" Won't you Kisa!"

Kisa was leaning away from him, her eyes wrought with confusion and fear, but at his last request, she slightly lowered her brow. She had regained her senses.

"Stay with you, and never go outside?" she asked quietly. "Stay with you, and never go to Shii-chan's house to see Onee-chan? And only see Hiro and the others on… on special occasions?"

"You'll be with me! And Kureno!" Akito cried, as if this were some great and splendid thing. Kisa looked at her mother, whose face was stricken with terror and shock, then returned her gaze to Akito, managing at last to make her voice firm.

"No," she said, frowning. "I won't."

She saw his hand fly, but was ready for it. If this was the price she had to pay, she'd pay it. That was her last resolution before everything went black.

_A/N: Yes, that was short. But it's a prologue. It's SUPPOSED to be short. A few of you know what that meant. As for the rest of you, be patient._


	2. Murder in the Night

Chapter 1: Murder in the Night

_A/N: I love this. It's so nice. talking about the weather Sunset is such an inspirational time, too… don't be too freaked by the title… it's kind of a joke…_

"Toooooooooohru!"

Kyo and Yuki looked up. The latter grinned silently to himself – Momiji had come to visit. Tohru put down her cooking utensils for the moment and peeked out into the dining room just as Momiji flew in, throwing his arms around her and grinning in the sweet way he did. Tohru returned the hug with a smile.

"Momiji-kun! Will you stay for dinner? I've made loads, so there'll be plenty!"

"Mmm!" said Momiji brightly. "Sounds yummy! Oh! But I have important news!"

"You came all the way here," asked Yuki, closing his text book and walking over, "to tell us that sensei is dating Hatori, didn't you?"

"Eh?" Tohru cried. "Sensei… Mayuko?"

"Oh," said Yuki, turning to her. "I thought you knew, Honda-san… They were eating lunch together today…"

"So that's why they had lunch!" Tohru asked, appalled. Yuki sighed. Momiji, meanwhile, was looking just as surprised as Tohru. He shifted a foot.

"And why sensei cut her hair…?" he asked thoughtfully. "But that's not why I came… actually…"

Kyo entered the room as he heard Momiji's voice become serious.

"It's Kisa," he said, looking at Tohru and smiling slightly. "She's… well, she's on her way here with Hiro… um… she's _out."_

"Speak what you mean, runt," Kyo said. "What do you mean 'out?'"

"Yes, Momiji," Yuki added. "What do you mean?"

"Of the Zodiac," Momiji replied, hugging Tohru again for demonstration. "Like me. Her curse has been lifted. And she's… she's rejected Akito… like I … did."

There was a long silence, in which the only sound was the soft tapping of the March rain. Tohru at last, involuntarily, found her eyes moving to Kyo. His were already on her, but they flicked away after only a moment's gaze. Tohru slowly lowered her eyes as well. First, well, first Kureno, then Momiji, and now Kisa? Would this continue…?

"Onee-chan! Onee-chan!"

In seconds a flurry of orange hair whizzed past Momiji and dove straight into Tohru, who had to steady herself a bit to keep standing. Kisa had grown a lot, though she still only reached Tohru's chin. Hiro, moreover, had grown like a weed – he stood just a hair shorter than Tohru.

"Kisa chan! I-I heard!" Tohru cried, hugging Kisa tight. "Y-you're…"

"Free!" Kisa said, as they broke apart. Then she did something Tohru hardly ever saw her do – she laughed. Tohru noticed a bandage on her cheek. "I'm just like a normal girl now! I'm out of the Zodiac!"

Even Momiji showed shock. Was this really Kisa? Or some imposter…? What had happened to her?

"Thank you, Onee-chan!" Kisa said brightly. "Thank you so much!"

After a moment of puzzlement, Tohru smiled and nodded. Hiro gave a noise that might have been of disgust and looked away, leaning against a wall.

"Ah-ah!" Tohru said suddenly, raising her fist triumphantly. "Kisa-chan and Hiro-kun! You must stay for dinner!"

"Will you stay with me, Hiro-chan?" Kisa asked, turning to look at him. Hiro didn't say anything for a moment as he clenched a fist inside his pocket. Then he cranked a smile forcingly and looked at her, his eyes watering.

"Of course."

"Great!" Momiji exclaimed, scooping Kisa into a one armed hug. "Tohru! Oh! Tohru! I'll make desert!"

"Eh-? Um, okay…" Tohru said, watching as Momiji cart wheeled across the room nervously. "W-watch the… vase…"

Yuki smiled softly and glanced at Tohru. To his surprise, she wasn't smiling anymore. Well, she was, but … it was a sad smile. A lonely - ?

Yuki teetered as the door behind him slid open and removed his back support. Turning and expecting to see Shigure, Yuki instead saw Kyo, walking slowly and sluggishly out of the room. Sure it was rainy, but Kyo'd been acting like this for months. He always looked depressed. What was worse, in the past four weeks he'd been shutting everyone out… even Tohru. He rarely talked to her, and when he did, it was solely out of necessity, at least ninety percent of the time. He'd cut his 3 trips a week to the dojo down to one. He didn't yell or snap or even make snide remarks about Yuki – he ignored him completely when he could, and showed no emotion whatsoever when those occurrences came that he could not avoid speaking to the rat. Yuki didn't know why, but this worried him immensely. For one, Tohru was becoming less and less spirited as the days passed. She _needed _him. The other reason was more vague to Yuki. He couldn't imagine that he'd _ever _be able to be concerned for the well being of the cat, but…

Yuki watched silently as Tohru stared sadly at the door Kyo'd just passed through. Eventually she turned, smiled a smile not her own at everyone around, and went into the kitchen to finish dinner. Yuki frowned. Something had to be done. They had to become friends again. They _had _to… But a little voice in Yuki's head saw It a different way. _If this is how bad Tohru's hurt right now, when Kyo's still here, how'll she react when… _

And Yuki understood. He understood why Kyo was depressed, why he was shutting everyone out. He wanted to break the fall, make it less hard on Tohru when the time came that he would have to leave. Yuki looked sadly through a crack in the door in the kitchen at Tohru, who looked extremely solemn as she stirred the soup. And he understood something else: Nothing would break Tohru's fall. This was going to hurt her… badly.

_A/N: I know you're all calling me a hypocrite, saying "You said you'd keep the characters IN CHARACTER! How is KISA IN CHARACTER?" Well, here's your answer. As I read into the manga about Kisa, I always thought that given the chance, she'd grow up to be a very strong, kind, girl. Strange, but I always saw her as a Ginny Weasley type character, the kind of independent and free spirited girl who cares loads for those around her. So excuse if you see Kisa turning into a spunky girl with a spicy personality. Because, like it or not, Furuba fans, the kids are growing up._

After watching the change practically every minute from 11:32 to 1:35 am, Tohru sat up in bed. She was going to have to face it – sleep wasn't going to come. She couldn't stop thinking about Kyo… why he was ignoring her, why she couldn't help but look at him… what she'd do when he went away. Now, however, her mind was a in a state of exhausted mush. She groggily rubbed her eyes and coughed. Her throat felt dry. In a somnambulatory state, she pulled on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt.

"Nh… water…" she muttered lightly, opening her bedroom door and venturing out into the corridor. "Water…Ky…o…"

She stumbled her way down the stairs, her eyes barely open, and followed the wall, not realizing the light in the kitchen was already on. She passed the kitchen door and went on towards the back of the house.

"Ky…o…" she muttered. "Wa…ter…"

Kyo tilted his head to the side as he gulped down a glass of milk. Had someone just said his name? He put the rest of the milk back in the refrigerator and flicked off the light in the kitchen, peeking his head out the door.

"Wa…ter… _Kyo…" _Tohru whispered at the end of the hall. She'd managed to get the back door open and was hastily making her way into the darkness outside. "_Kyo, wait!"_

Kyo cringed and dashed after her, feeling sick. Why was she asking him to wait in her dreams? It twisted his stomach and he felt his head grow hot as he easily caught up with Tohru and snatched her hand, pulling her remotely close to him so that they were facing each other. Tohru blinked for a moment, then looked around.

"Ky…o-kun?" she said, confused. "Why are we outside…?"

"Good question," Kyo said, turning his head slightly away from her. Why did this always happen? Why did he always fall into situations in which he couldn't avoid wishing he could be with her forever? He let go of her hand and turned around.

"Go inside. You'll catch cold," he commanded, with as little emotion as he could display. Tohru nodded and walked in front of him back into the house. Kyo closed (and locked) the door. He had to get out of here…

"Right, er," he quickly went to the kitchen and filled a glass of water and handed it to her. "Night, Tohru."

"I-bu-thank you… um…" Tohru stammered as Kyo passed her, rushing out of the kitchen. What was bothering him? "Kyo-kun, please, wait!"

Kyo stopped and knew, before he even turned around, that he'd made her cry. He slowly turned around and stared at her, feeling pathetic, as she cried into her elbow, having put her water shakily on the counter. She hadn't realized he was still there. But how could he go, _now… ?_

"Tohru," he said, causing her to hiccup and jump as she noticed him. "Look… er… don't cry… why are you crying…?"

Without warning, the door slid open and Shigure marched in, looking gleeful at the sight of them. He patted Tohru on the back.

"Because, Kyo-kun!" You're being a big meanie!" Shigure cried happily. He pressed his cheek to Tohru's head. "Poor Tohruuuuu… I'm not a meanie to you, am I? You'd much rather have _me _as your loyal husband, wouldn't you?"

"Eh?" Tohru cried, blushing furiously. "EH?"

Kyo clenched a fist. Shigure hadn't tried his temper this badly in a while… but he managed not to shout and merely glared. He wouldn't always be there to protect her from this pervert… wouldn't… be… All at once, Kyo's glare sank into a pained grimace, his hand limped weakly at his side. Shigure noticed this, and so did Tohru. Their hearts skipped a beat.

"Tohru and I are _lovey-dovey!" _Shigure continued, bubbly. He had to try a bit harder. "Oh! And we can get Aaya to make your wedding dress, Tohru-kun!"

Yuki awoke to the sound of Shigure's screams. He groggily sat up and listened sleepily to the sounds below.

"My house, Kyo-kun!" Shigure was shouting. "Do what you want to me – but don't hurt my house!"

"She'll _NEVER _be your wife you sick-"

"Do you know how much that lamp _cost! _Kyo, you can't take your jealousy out on my house!"

"_Shut up!"_

"Stop hitting things!"

"_You _stop dodging!"

Yuki raised his eyes as the bickering continued, though he had to admit it calmed his nerves to hear his cousin shouting again. But really, some people were trying to sleep. Poor Tohru was probably exhausted from –

"EEP! Kyo-kun! W-wait!"

Yuki groaned. Kyo sounded angry, chances were he was going to get her with something eventually… Yuki pulled on a shirt and rushed down the stairs, dreading the scene he'd enter below.

"Yuki-kun! Did we wake you?" Tohru asked, rushing over broken glass to reach him. Yuki eyed the numerous broken decorations on the floor and then Shigure, cowering in a corner as Kyo stood looking over him, his maximum fury unwinding. How could anyone sleep through that?

"Now Kyo-kun…" Shigure was saying. "Let's not be too rash… it was all in good fun you know… Ah! Yuki-kun, you'll save me, won't you? You wouldn't let this naughty kitty hurt me, would you? … Yuki-kun …? Do something!"

"From the sounds of it, you deserve everything that's about to happen to you," Yuki said dismissively. "Let's go back to bed, Honda-san. Oh, say good bye to Shigure if you must… he may not be here in the morning."

"Y-Yuki kun!" Shigure cried in disbelief, crying miserably. "H-how could you! I've taken you in – been your comfort – made you laugh when you were sad, and this is how you repay me!"

Yuki nodded.

"Come, Honda-san," Yuki said, pulling her out of the room.

"Eh…?"

Tohru looked worriedly back over her shoulder as they exited, but inside, something gave a sigh of relaxation – just for a moment. Kyo might be sad, but he was still Kyo. And he was still here. Plus, Kisa's curse had lifted… would this soon happen to the other members of the Zodiac as well…? She couldn't help but hope so. All she could do was be there for all of them. Tohru didn't know if she was the reason the curse had lifted for Momiji and Kisa… but she did know that, no matter what, she'd stay with them. All of them. Until the end and beyond.

_A/N: So ends Chapter 1! (don't worry, I'd never really murder Shigure except in my dreams…) Many of you are probably like "Yay, Kyo's normal again!" Eh… not exactly. That was just a slip. I needed it to get Toh-Toh's resolution down. So yeah… well, here we go with Chapter 2! And the theme is… Akito-chan! Hooray!_


	3. A Boy Gets Sick

Chapter 2: A Boy Gets Sick

_A/N: Yes, yes, I know. Akito is not a … blah. I guess I'm going to have to spoil it though, Okies? I can't really do this without. So for those of you who don't know, Akito's a girl. Yay. Hooray. Poor Aki-chan… I love her so!_

_Thanks to Reviewers:_

_PurifiedDarkness (aka Jess): Thanks for your support. I agree, this will make an excellent cycle. To answer your question about the curse, that's kind of the way it happens. Kureno's curse wore off years ago, which is why he stays with Akito, because she "felt" his curse break and begged him not to leave her. He said he wouldn't. Momiji and Kisa, on the other hand… So it's been happening one by one. In the manga, Hiro actually is released after Momiji, but I didn't know that until after I'd written my own story for Hiro's curse breaking, so there's a bit of variation there._

_Coltee: Thank you for your awesome review. Looking back on my previous chapters, I realized that you're right. Some of the time it's hard to tell who is talking. I'll definitely try to work on that in the future!_

_Okay, now back to the story…_

_No, I won't._

Akito dug her nails into the rose in her hand; the juice squeezed out of it and trickled down her arm. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair. And it was _her _fault. That stupid witch of a girl.

"She's probably so proud," she spat in disgust. "So proud of her little accomplishment. So then, she's got Momiji and Kisa. But I… I've got you, haven't I?"

Kureno nodded tartly.

"If the others do change," she continued. "_They'll _come to me. _They _love me, they're not blinded by that filthy-_filthy-_temptress."

She laughed wickedly.

"She thinks she's winning, I'll bet! But no," she continued, gritting her teeth. "They will come to _me _because they love _me _not _her. _It's almost sad, how she'll be left alone – those three, all alone. Because everyone loves me. _They love me!"_

"Don't be ridiculous," laughed a voice behind them. "How could they, when you torture them so? How could _anyone, _for that matter, love someone who killed her own-"

"_Shut up!" _Akito shouted, scrambling out of Kureno's arms and flying at the tall, dark haired woman, who laughed as she (Aki) tripped and fell to the floor. "Y-You're the most – the most-"

"Don't stutter," Ren commanded her daughter, shaking a finger at her tauntingly. "You're so pathetic. Can't even walk! Ahaha!"

She broke into a horrible cackle as Kureno wrapped his arms around Akito tightly, preventing her renewed attack. All at once, tears were streaming down Akito's cheeks, although her eyes still blazed in anger.

"THEY LOVE ME!" she shouted. "THEY LOVE ME! NO ONE – NO ONE EVER LOVES YOU! THEY ALL LOVE ME!"

"Is that why they're leaving you?" Ren giggled. Akito nearly broke free of Kureno as he attempted to lunge at his mother, but she was already being ushered out by a number of maids. "I bet even Shigure will leave you in the end…"

Akito lunged out of Kureno's arms and flew towards the door, but Ren was already gone, and Kureno had once more grabbed her arms. She fell into him, sobbing and shaking.

"They love me… they'll never leave me… ever…"

Akito stared at the glass of water on the ground in front of her. In it, the ice showed no signs of melting. Actually, the water was more likely to freeze than the ice melt. Akito vaguely wondered what would freeze first – the water or her own body?

She was outside in the woods sitting on the cold dirt. It was March, and it was snowing. Snowing! In the half hour she'd been sitting here, the snow had began to pile up. She was definitely going to freeze first. She was barefoot, for one. She had on a pair of old shorts and a tanktop. Her mother would not approve. She looked almost like a girl.

_I am a girl…_

Well, kind of. Lately Akito had been wondering – could she suddenly change, go against her mother's wishes, and live as a girl? Always, her answer drifted to no. Whatever about her body, her mind had been taught to think like a boy. And she'd had so much practice in deepening her voice that she wan't sure if she even _could _use her natural voice anymore. The girl in her, if there ever was one, was dead. After thinking this, Akito always felt pathetic. Was it really that she _wanted _now, to be agirl?

"Akito," she said in her toned deep voice. She thought about how she'd said it for a moment. Then she opened her mouth again.

"Akito," she said, trying to say it with her throat as clear as possible. It sounded only a little different. She sighed and hugged her knees to her chest. The girl in her was dead, alright…

In her head, she suddenly heard the laughter. The laughter that always drove her crazy, ripping at her mind in such a painful way, ripping until she couldn't feel anything anymore. She hated it. She hated it with all her soul.

_As if you'd make a reasonable girl anyway… everyone would hate you even more if you were a girl. You'd insult the word female… And do you really think any man could ever fall in love with someone like you?_

"Shut up!" Akito half moaned, half snapped. The laughter, the voice, vanished. (It was Ren, by the way…). She looked around in surprise. Her voice…

"Akito!" she cried into the silent woods again as the snow fell around her. No good. It was still deep. But she _had _to try again. Throat _clear, _don't deepen it… "A-ki-to!"

For the first in her life, she found herself wanting to change. So badly it hurt. She was a girl! And she was a better girl than her wretched mother ever was! She was a girl, just like… just like…

"Just like Tohru…" she said softly. And then her eyes widened in amazement. Her voice… it was the most beautiful sound she'd ever heard. Not because her voice was a voice of angels or anything like that, but because the voice was hers. She closed her eyes and smiled, then fell back into the piling snow, staring at the sky.

"Just like… Tohru…" she whispered.

Kureno gazed around by the light of the moon. The snow was at least two and a half feet deep. He had to admit, he was getting worried. He'd been looking for her for hours.

"Akito," he called again. Wait… there. He moved towards the figure on the ground and wiped the snow off. It was Akito, alright. In… a tank top and shorts! What was she… what was she _thinking?_

"Akito!" he said, lifting her limp form up and throwing his coat around her. "Wake up, come on…"

He rubbed her arms and shook her a bit. Slowly, her eyes flicked open, and her white face broke… into a smile. A genuine smile. It startled Kureno so he nearly dropped her.

"Kureno," she said, and he nearly dropped her. "Hi."

"Akito… your voice," he said uncertainly. "Its…"

"Different?" she asked with a sly smile. "Yeah. I'd better fix that… is this better?" she asked deeply. Kureno looked confused. Akito laughed, shifting so that her legs fell out of his arms to the ground and standing up.

"I'm hungry!" she said in the same deep voice, frowning slightly as she returned to normal. "Let's go eat."

"Uh… sure… Akito," Kureno said, still staring at her strangely. "Aren't you cold?"

"Yes," Akito said, as she started walking. "I suppose so. But I'll be fine."

Akito pulled Kureno along. She _was _a girl. She'd prove it. To them all.

_A/N: No, this is not going to be an overnight thing. But I am going to 'free' Akito from Ren, just watch me. That's all for Akito chan for a while, we need to give her time. We'll spoil the time by talking about the other characters…_

_It might be a while before I update, the next chapter (The Battles Inside) is really long. It will take me a while to type up…_


End file.
